canoodle

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Origin Unknown; compare Swedish knulla ‎(“to fornicate”), German knuddeln ‎(“to cuddle”). Folk etymology cites the use of two person canoes as an activity to escape the presence of a chaperon by couples during Victorian and Edwardian times, and the activities such privacy allowed.

26 June 2014, A.A Dowd, AV Club Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler spoof rom-com clichés in They Came Together[1]

As Norah Jones coos sweet nothings on the soundtrack, the happy couple—played by Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler—canoodle through a Manhattan montage, making pasta for two, swimming through a pile of autumn leaves, and horsing around at a fruit stand.

1900:Charles Felton Pidgin, Quincy Adams Sawyer and Mason's Corner Folks - A Picture of New England Home Life - He canoodled my husband into believin' that the end of the world was comin' and it was his duty to give all his property away.